Paris Saint-Germain plan to partner Lionel Messi with Cristiano Ronaldo, Man Utd identify Frenkie De Jong alternative

Paris Saint-Germain are weighing up the possibility of adding Cristiano Ronaldo to their star-studded squad this summer. Spanish media outlet Marca reveal that the French club’s sporting advisor, Luis Campos, has been in contact with the Portuguese international’s agent, Jorge Mendes. The French champions are hoping to combine Lionel Messi with Ronaldo in a bid to bring together two of the greatest footballers of all time. The 37-year-old reportedly wants to leave Manchester United this summer and has also been linked with Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Chelsea.

Paper Round’s view: Ronaldo wants to leave Old Trafford this summer so he can have one last shot at winning the Champions League. PSG are definitely a club that can afford to meet his eye-watering wage demands and the possibility of playing alongside Messi will pique his interest. Imagine watching two of the all-time greats playing alongside each other (and Kylian Mbappe and Neymar!) on a weekly basis. It would be amazing. However, would PSG really be able to challenge for the Champions League if they are trying to fit all these attacking players into their line-up? Probably not. Football just doesn’t work like that.

Manchester United have identified an alternative to their “top target” Frenkie de Jong, according to Spanish media outlet Sport. New manager Erik ten Hag is trying to convince the Dutch midfielder to move to Old Trafford, but it seems that De Jong is not keen on leaving Barcelona this summer. Sport state that United have made Paris Saint-Germain’s Leandro Paredes their “Plan B” option. The Premier League side have made contact with PSG and it looks like the French champions are willing to part with the 28-year-old this summer. However, United will look to negotiate down the initial asking price of €35 million.

Paper Round’s view: Manchester United just don’t have the same pull that they once had. The club has been a bit of a mess for nearly 10 years now – basically since Sir Alex Ferguson retired in 2013. Supporters thought they were back in the big time last summer after signing Cristiano Ronaldo, Jadon Sancho and Raphael Varane, but it was just another disappointing campaign. The Red Devils failed to qualify for the Champions League and, therefore, will struggle to sign players of De Jong’s calibre this summer. Paredes is probably more of a realistic option and would be a decent signing.

Chelsea were planning to sign “at least two defenders this summer”, according to the Standard. The Blues recently lost defensive duo Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen for free after their contracts at Stamford Bridge expired. The club are close to completing a deal to re-sign former player Nathan Ake from Manchester City and will add at least one more centre-back to their squad. The Standard report that Chelsea have Matthijs de Ligt, Jules Kounde and Dayot Upamecano on their shortlist this summer and have already held talks with the former two. Upamecano is viewed as a potential option if De Ligt decides to join Bayern over Chelsea.

Paper Round’s view: There’s no doubt that Thomas Tuchel needs to add a couple more centre-backs to his squad before the start of the new season. Rudiger is going to be a huge miss and it’s going to take a big personality to replace him. De Ligt is seemingly edging closer to a Bayern Munich move, which could open the door to Upamecano. However, Kounde would probably be a more exciting option. The 23-year-old Sevilla centre-back has impressed over the past few years in Spain and has been a long-term target for Chelsea. He might cost more, but it would be smart to go for a long-term target over a player - Upamecano - that Bayern are looking to replace with De Ligt.

Barcelona have reportedly won the race to sign Raphinha from Leeds United, according to the Mail. The Catalan club have tabled a late bid, matching Chelsea’s offer of £63 million, which should be enough to secure the Brazilian’s signature. Raphinha’s preferred destination has always been Barcelona, but the Blaugrana were waiting to raise their transfer funds by selling a percentage of their television rights.

Paper Round’s view: Barcelona are continuing their rebuild after losing Lionel Messi and Antoine Griezmann last summer. The club have had some very well-documented financial problems, which raises the question: why are they spending £63 million on Raphinha? Barcelona have Ansu Fati, Ousmane Dembele, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Ferran Torres and Memphis Depay at their disposal. There is no real need to sign Raphinha. Especially for that much money when there is a need for a rebuild.